my formula 233

[Bull]

Its great to see your out there useing her after all the work that you have done. youve racked up 70 hours pretty quick.
She still looks the goods.
Cheers Bull

[OPTI]

The expectation...first Marlin in the boat...nothing like playing with the big boys. How will she handle backing down Opti ?

the plan is to fight the fish off the drivers side corner and only back down if required to get the tag in,with the motors trimmed up a bit she backs up quite well .,and the engine well is deep enough to handle the water.
as for playing with the big boys ,i was followed out by lucky strike[36 black watch] to the riv grounds ,it was nasty sea ,1.5 to 2m swell with 3 ft chop coming at different angles ,we had to punch into it all the way out ,20 knts had the props getting plenty of air,so back to 16knts with the tabs down and just punched through ,we got smashed ,and im sore today,but the black watch didnt pass us.
we were 200m off lucky strike at jims mountain when they hooked up to a 800lb blue,oh what could of been.untill next week .

[captain rednut]

hey dave that looks like george in those photos?? are you going to fish mooloolaba comp?? im not going to be launched before that like planned ill be on the week after, you know how many delays there are near the completion stage of fit outs.
cheers jim

[OPTI]

yeah jim thats george ,all round top bloke and not a bad marlin deckie to boot.
im iffy at moolooaba atm really weather dependant as il have to come up via water.il let you know ,i save a spot for you if i do.
take your time with your boat ,the last little things always take the most time,sure will be worth it ,its looking awesome.

[Cootac]

What I love about this boat , It looks mean looks like a show boat , but olso puts food on the table which is great to see.

And well done on the build looks fantastic .
Mark.

[OPTI]

just got the boat fuelled up and ready for a full day of trolling tomorrow.i went out on a full tank [600lt] last saturday ,the boat ran 12hrs that day,we went from coomera marina to riv grounds ,trolled for 9 hrs all the way to jims mountain and back ,then from riv grounds back to home.for a total fuel usage of 360 ltrs..i just wanted to fill it back up to check the accuracy of the vessel view ,its with in 3 ltrs.im pretty happy with those numbers considering the hours it did and the distance it travelled with 2 thirsty 225 optis.

[wirlybird]

those numbers makes me worry what my one will chew with the 454 horizon in her

You would have been giving it some curry to raise some fish wouldn't you OPTI?

[OPTI]

in the broadwater i sit on 4200rpm which is 40 mph ,in the ocean i go as fast as conditions allow,last saturday 20 mph was max speed going out ,8 knts trolling lures is 1700 rpm ,we came back in at 28 mph @ around 3000 rpm.im very happy with the total used for the time and distance travelled.
yes your 454 will be thirsty,will be interesting to see your numbers

[OPTI]

christened the new boat with its first blue marlin yesterday ,first for me as well.

[Chimo]

Nice! May need a bigger net than that in pic 2

The boat is exceeding expectations, which is great.

Cheers
Chimo

[OPTI]

thats not a net mate its the tension bungie on the out rigger

[wirlybird]

it looks like a great day allround

[Jabba_]

That looks great Opti, perfect weather too.... Where did you hook up the blue? Riviera grounds?

I get my boat back on Friday, so if you want to go out over the weekend and get some pics, I'm up for it..

[matt fraser]

Congratulations Opti, well done! a great and memorable capture I'm sure. Great to see you out there making the most of your fantastic boat.

Looks like a fair size, how big do you reckon?

Cheers,

Matt

[OPTI]

thanks lads ,i thinks its around 150kg or 330 lb it was around 2m short length.
sounds good jabb il talk later in the week.
got the fish on the riv grounds